Short Summary

Yugoslav health officials have set up free vaccination centres in various parts of the country following an outbreak of smallpox which has led to at least 16 deaths.

Description

Yugoslav health officials have set up free vaccination centres in various parts of the country following an outbreak of smallpox which has led to at least 16 deaths.

The outbreak was apparently started by a Yugoslav Muslim who had recently returned from a pilgrimage to Mecca via Iraq, where cases of the disease had been reported.

The epidemic has led to stringent border check-ups throughout Europe. In Hanover, West Germany, health authorities quarantined nearly 500 people believed to have been in contact with a Yugoslav migrant worker who had arrived in the city suffering from smallpox. And in London, the Department of Health told all holidaymakers planning to visit Yugoslavia over Easter weekend that they must be vaccinated against the disease.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), smallpox is fatal in between five and thirty per cent of cases, depending on where the outbreak is and on the standard of medical attention available. WHO say??? the present smallpox situation in Europe is not directly related to other outbreaks in the middle East and Bangladesh.

SYNOPSIS: In Yugoslavia at least sixteen people have died since smallpox broke out in Serbia earlier this month. Mass vaccinations began on Wednesday in various parts of the country. Most of the deaths have been in Kosovo province, where 90 cases have been reported. But the disease has also reached the capital, Belgrade, where five people have died.

The disease is believed to have been brought to the country by a Yugoslav Muslim returning from a pilgrimage to Mecca. It's thought he may have contracted smallpox in Iraq. And in West Germany, health authorities in the city of Hanover are trying to isolate all contacts with a Yugoslav migrant worker found to be suffering from smallpox.